ABC's 'Revenge' has good chance of making it to second season

Q.I've hesitated to get into "Revenge" since I'm unsure whether it will go past this season. Do you know if it will?

- Jeff Scott,Milwaukee

A. This calls for a little crystal-ball use, since ABC won't announce its fall schedule for next season until May. That isn't to say some shows couldn't get early pickups, and in the case of "Revenge," that surely would be helpful given the nature of the show, which virtually demands a definitive wrap-up, whenever that time may come.

If we were to make an educated guess, though, we'd wager that the show will stick around. It has the most buzz of the dramas that debuted on ABC in September, and star Emily VanCamp has been getting particularly good notices for her performance in the central role.

Q. Will Kristin Chenoweth be on "Glee" again?

- Susan Price, Chicago

A. Currently a People's Choice Award nominee for the series, the Emmy- and Tony-winning Broadway dynamo says that she'd love to, should the Fox show's writers and producers be able to come up with something else for her recurring character, April Rhodes. The scheduling could be a little tricky, though; Chenoweth has been busy filming her own series, "GCB," which ABC is scheduled to debut March 4.

Q.I've noticed that the Chairman on "Top Chef" is also on "Hawaii Five-0" as Wo Fat. Does this mean "Top Chef" is scripted also?

- Barbara Harkins,Palm Coast, Fla.

A. That's an interesting extrapolation, and the short answer is "no." It's actually Food Network's "Iron Chef America" on which actor Mark Dacascos is the Chairman, and yes, he's playing roles on both shows. But even though that's the case for him on "Iron Chef America," the competition still is an actual competition, albeit done with a very dramatic flair. That doesn't mean the entire show is scripted, though CBS' "Hawaii Five-0" is, of course.

Q.Two of my favorite shows, now in repeats, are "Naked City" and "Route 66." Could you tell me what Paul Burke, Martin Milner and George Maharis are doing now?

- Edward Kleinedler,Benwood, W.Va.

A. Burke, who would follow "Naked City" by starring in the series version of "12 O'Clock High," died in 2009. He was the grandfather of Alia Shawkat, who apparently will be rejoining her former "Arrested Development" co-stars to make new episodes of the comedy that will be available via Netflix in 2013.

Milner, who was with "Route 66" for its entire run (1960-'64) and then made the Jack Webb-produced police show "Adam-12," is retired and puts much of his focus on fishing these days. And Maharis, who left "Route 66" before the third season ended (and was replaced by Glenn Corbett), is retired as well.

Q.What happened to ABC's "Shark Tank"?

- Muriel Dameron,Irvine, Calif.

A. The show's third season is slated to begin Feb. 3, thus returning the program to the Friday slot it also had last time around. Mark Cuban will be among the panelists back to deal with the hopeful entrepreneurs, who get 13 episodes to display their ideas and wares this time.

Q.Which network has the Super Bowl this time?

- John Powers,Columbus, Ohio

A. NBC, which can spend the next month promoting that it also will have a Madonna halftime show Feb. 5. That could be a real boon to the "peacock network" in another way, since it will follow the big game with the second-season premiere of "The Voice."

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